acm-header
Sign In

Communications of the ACM

News


bg-corner

An edited collection of advanced computing news from Communications of the ACM, ACM TechNews, other ACM resources, and news sites around the Web.


Low-Level Federal Judges Balking at Law Enforcement Requests For Electronic Evidence
From ACM News

Low-Level Federal Judges Balking at Law Enforcement Requests For Electronic Evidence

Judges at the lowest levels of the federal judiciary are balking at sweeping requests by law enforcement officials for cellphone and other sensitive personal data...

High School Students Are All About Computers but Get Little Instruction in Computer Science
From ACM TechNews

High School Students Are All About Computers but Get Little Instruction in Computer Science

There is a significant gap between U.S. high school students' exposure to computer science and their use of computers and technology. 

Google, Once Disdainful of Lobbying, Now a Master of Washington Influence
From ACM News

Google, Once Disdainful of Lobbying, Now a Master of Washington Influence

In May 2012, the law school at George Mason University hosted a forum billed as a "vibrant discussion" about Internet search competition.

U.S. Rallied 120 Nations in Response to 2012 Cyberattack on American Banks
From ACM TechNews

U.S. Rallied 120 Nations in Response to 2012 Cyberattack on American Banks

In 2012, the Obama administration appealed to 120 nations to help block a wide-ranging cyberattack campaign against U.S. banks 

Twitter Is Surprisingly Accurate at Predicting Unemployment
From ACM News

Twitter Is Surprisingly Accurate at Predicting Unemployment

Twitter is full of relative junk: tweets you don't want to read from people you're not all that interested in knowing, almost all of them chiming in on topics (see ...

A Veteran Programmer Explains How the Stock Market Became "Rigged"
From ACM Opinion

A Veteran Programmer Explains How the Stock Market Became "Rigged"

A small group of financial firms are using their technological superiority to skim the top off the market, Michael Lewis claims in his new book "Flash Boys."

Supreme Court Weighs Software Patents
From ACM TechNews

Supreme Court Weighs Software Patents

It is not yet clear whether the U.S. Supreme Court will help bring greater clarity to the rules governing software patents.

In New Case, Supreme Court Revisits the Question of Software Patents
From ACM News

In New Case, Supreme Court Revisits the Question of Software Patents

If you write a book or a song, you can get copyright protection for it. If you invent a pill or a better mousetrap, you can patent it.

Tor ­sage in Turkey Surges During Twitter Ban
From ACM News

Tor ­sage in Turkey Surges During Twitter Ban

Since Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan implemented a ban on Twitter late last week, Tor usage in the country has surged—with connections nearly doubling...

How a Laser Beam Could Quadruple the Speed of the Internet
From ACM TechNews

How a Laser Beam Could Quadruple the Speed of the Internet

A new kind of laser holds the potential to quadruple  bandwidth on the fastest fiber-optic networks. 

Why Mh370 Could Still Talk to Satellites After Its Other Comms Went Dark
From ACM News

Why Mh370 Could Still Talk to Satellites After Its Other Comms Went Dark

It's the latest mystery in the hunt for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370: Was a key communications system on board the plane disabled before or after the co-pilot calmly...

Google's Project Loon: The Gamble That's So Crazy It Might Work
From ACM TechNews

Google's Project Loon: The Gamble That's So Crazy It Might Work

Google recently launched Project Loon, which provides Wi-Fi connectivity to remote locations using high-altitude balloons, wind currents, and solar power. 

Federal Agencies Embrace New Technology and Strategies to Find the Enemy Within
From ACM News

Federal Agencies Embrace New Technology and Strategies to Find the Enemy Within

After years of focusing on outside threats, the federal government and its contractors are turning inward, aiming a range of new technologies and counterintelligence...

Hackers Allegedly Stole $400 Million in Bitcoins. Here's How to Catch Them.
From ACM Opinion

Hackers Allegedly Stole $400 Million in Bitcoins. Here's How to Catch Them.

On Friday, what had been the world's leading Bitcoin exchange declared bankrutpcy, claiming that hackers had exploited a technical issue called "transaction malleability...

The Six Types of Conversations on Twitter
From ACM News

The Six Types of Conversations on Twitter

A new report from the Pew Research Center and the Social Media Research Foundation says that Twitter conversations have distinct shapes—at least six of them with...

Keeping Women in High-Tech Fields Is Big Challenge, Report Finds
From ACM TechNews

Keeping Women in High-Tech Fields Is Big Challenge, Report Finds

A report found U.S. women in science, technology, engineering, and math fields are 45 percent more likely than their male peers to leave the industry within a year...

Obama's Big Plan to Protect Businesses from Cyberattack
From ACM News

Obama's Big Plan to Protect Businesses from Cyberattack

It's been a long time coming, and some experts say it isn't enough.

New Surveillance Technology Can Track Everyone in an Area for Several Hours at a Time
From ACM News

New Surveillance Technology Can Track Everyone in an Area for Several Hours at a Time

Shooter and victim were just a pair of pixels, dark specks on a gray streetscape. 

One Day an Elevator Might Ask—are You Getting On?
From ACM News

One Day an Elevator Might Ask—are You Getting On?

Microsoft researchers have enabled elevators in a company building to detect the likelihood that a person walking by will want to board it.

'have You Ever Been on a Boat?' and 15 Other Weird Interview Questions from Tech Firms
From ACM Careers

'have You Ever Been on a Boat?' and 15 Other Weird Interview Questions from Tech Firms

Looking for a new job?
Sign In for Full Access
» Forgot Password? » Create an ACM Web Account